Every month we take a look a round and select some of the most interesting web-development-related web-sites. Below you’ll find useful references, tutorials, services, tools, techniques and articles we’ve found over the last 30 days – an overview of web-sites you shouldn’t have missed in February 2007. Links checked: May/26 2008.

References, Tutorials

IMified – Instant Productivity1
integrates modern Web 2.0-applicaion in an Instant Messenger of your choice and gives you an instant access to web-services. This Desktop-Tool supports BaseCamp, Google Calendar, Blogger, Livejournal, WordPress, Livejournal, Movabletype, Backpack and other services. You can integrate IMified in AIM, MSN and Google Talk/Jabber.
2

Flash embed test suite10
The Flash embed test suite assesses the browser support for various markup-based embedding methods. It includes information on parameters including support for different Flash publish settings, streaming, and scriptability.

SimpleLog 2.0.211
A simple and free A Ruby on Rails weblog application that helps you focus on writing above all else. SimpleLog has all the features you want in a weblogging applicaton wrapped in an efficiently designed interface that eliminates clutter.

Web Directions North | February 6 – 10, 2007 – WDN07 Resources15
“Web Directions North was a week of enlightenment, inspiration, networking, and snowboarding. Over the coming weeks we’ll be making podcasts of various sessions available, so make sure to check back for the start of those. We’ve also put together resource pages of speaker’s notes and slides — more to come soon! You’ll find all of these in the WDN07 resources section of the site.”

WriteMaps24
WriteMaps is a free web-based tool that allows you to create, edit, and share sitemaps online.

frevvo – web form builder25
frevvo Live Forms™ Designer leverages Ajax technologies to create rich, dynamic forms without writing a single line of code.

bubbl.us26
a simple powerful mind mapping application: Share and work together with your friends. Brainstorm without touching the mouse. Display your ideas online or through email. Print your work.

WordPress Feed Styler27
Feed Styler is a WordPress plugin for WordPress users who are comfortable with CSS and would like to be able to style their feeds. Feed Styler enables you to keep your existing class and ID style declarations in your content, but allows a different style to be applied to the feed of that same content.

CSS-based Techniques, (X)HTML, PHP

Mini tabbed pages28
A method of compressing short pieces of information into six mini tabbed pages.

Flexible fixed layouts31
In this month’s tutorial, we’re going to show you one method for creating a layout that works well at both of the most popular screen sizes, despite the design being a fixed width. It results in a flexible design that’s suitable for many applications, including corporate sites, portfolios and blogs.

Even More Rounded Corners With CSS34
another article detailing a method of doing rounded corners with CSS. In this case, single-image, PNG-based, fluid rounded corner dialogs with support for borders, alpha transparency throughout, gradients, patterns and whatever else you (or your designer) could want.

Plotr40
Plotr is a javascript framework which enables you to render charts in most modern browsers. It’s based on the PlotKit Framework (renderer for Mochikit) and it depends on the Prototype Javascript Framework.
41

Flash Embedding Cage Match48
In this article, I will look into the complexities and subtleties of embedding Flash content and examine the most popular embedding methods to see how good they really are – by Bobby van der Sluis

Ruby on Rails for the Rest of Us49
“You’re a designer, information architect, or project manager, or you may develop with PHP, but don’t claim to be a code warrior. Clients have been asking about Ruby on Rails, or your colleagues are using it. You’d like some clarity on what it is and when to use it—without wading through articles thick with jargon and alphabet soup. If you’re looking to move ahead, painlessly, in your understanding of this programming framework, then Justin Williams’ “Ruby on Rails for the Rest of Us” is just the ticket.”

15 CSS Properties You Probably Never Use (but perhaps should)50
After writing 5 HTML Elements You Probably Never Use (but perhaps should), I thought creating something similar for CSS was in order. These are all CSS level 2 properties but some of them don’t work in all browsers, so make sure and test things out before putting them into use.

X/HTML 5 Versus XHTML 252
The competition to become the next markup language for the Web is heating up. This article takes a look at what’s cool and what’s uncool about the competing technologies.

Evaluation of WYSIWYG editors (2007)53
It has been almost a year since I tested accessibility features in some of the more popular WYSIWYG editors commonly found in open source content management systems (see Evaluation of WYSIWYG editors). During this time, most of these editors have been further developed. Let’s have a look at how they fare a year on.
54

8 Web Design Tactics to Help You When You Are Stuck56
Web design can be incredibly frustrating. You’d think that with the infinite possibilities of what-goes-where it’d be pretty easy to land a design that works, yet somehow we’ve all been stuck before: working hour after hour on a design that refuses to look right. Throwing away pixels like they’re going out of style. These 8 tactics are what I use to get out of that sticky spot.

The Web’s Best Interface Design58
the amount of new web applications, features, and companies sprouting up is just astounding, and while some like to characterize “Web 2.0″ design as involving lots of cliche diagonal lines and shadows it still takes a lot of skill to execute an attractive user interface. I’ve been checking out new sites and web applications for many months now and I’ve put together my list of the best interface design examples I’ve found..

CSS techniques I use all the time61
I’m always learning new things with CSS. It’s interesting because I’ve thought of myself as a CSS expert for a while now (I’ll challenge anyone to a competition, seriously) but I still keep learning and improving. I’ve come across some techniques lately that are extremely valuable and worth sharing. Have a look:

Web Misunderstandards62
“As I referenced in my last article, the benefits and characteristics of Web standards are not being effectively communicated to many who need to hear and learn about them. The result is that some understandably leap to inaccurate conclusions while gross mischaracterizations are allowed to fester among members of the design and development community” – by Andy Rutledge.

Icon Design: Sizing63
One of the more deceptively time-consuming things you’ll do when creating an icon is producing out size variations. If you require a single icon in more than one size, the time you spend designing the first size is only about two thirds of the work you’ll end up doing; the other third lies in tweaking it for different dimensions – by Dave Shea

LogoSauce – Logo design, inspiration and information.67
logo showcase and commenting site. “LogoSauce evolved into a place for logo designers to not only point people to the source artwork, but to showcase their designs, admire others, comment and discuss logo design and hopefully get some inspiration.”

Freefont: 5 More Freefonts70
Every week we take a close look around, visit dozens of typography-related sites, check out the latest updates and choose the best free fonts, which have been released or appeared over the last few weeks. And all the fonts we find are getting published immediately, here on Smashing Magazine.
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The last Click

Web 2.0 … The Machine is Us/ing Us72
One video tells sometimes more than dozens of words. This short movie about the evolution of the Internet describes the most important changes the Web undergoes now and advantages of Web 2.0. This video was viewed by more than 1.6 Mio users on YouTube.

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